U.S., Russia Vie to Dominate
Georgian Gate to Caspian Oil

By

Jeanne Whalen Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

Updated Oct. 8, 2002 12:01 a.m. ET

TBILISI, Georgia -- When Washington announced it was sending a team of elite soldiers to help post-Soviet Georgia fight a war on terror in Russia's backyard, Moscow swallowed its pride and acquiesced. But soon after the Americans arrived this spring, trouble started.

While young Georgian recruits soaked up lessons on shooting and ducking fire, Russian forces still based on Georgian soil began jamming the radio frequencies used by American-built helicopters during training, according to Georgia's national-security adviser....